Antique ormolu mounted Chinese cloisonné enamel jardinière

The jardinière is placed on a decorative openwork ormolu (gilt bronze) base, set on four monopodia supports, each composed of a lion’s head with a single leg and paw foot. To decorate the jardinière body, metal strips were soldered onto the object's surface, creating cells of space (called 'cloisons') which were then filled with vitreous enamel. Known as cloisonné, this enamelling technique was widely employed in China during the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911/12) dynasties. The jardinière body is decorated with green, light blue, white, black, navy and red flowers and plants, with similarly coloured butterflies fluttering between them. These are placed against a blue ground. The gold coloured cloisons (cells) have left beautiful geometric patterns on the object’s surface. The jardinière’s neck is decorated with a black meander, and its mouth is edged with an openwork ormolu gallery. This is fitted with two ormolu rectangular handles, which extend down the enamel body, and feature dragon heads holding a second pair of handles in their open mouths.

This jardinière is a beautiful antique piece, which will make a wonderful addition to a well-furnished interior, either traditional or modern in its design.